


Akuttujuuk: Two Placed Far Apart (the Orion Dying Remix)

by Ride_Forever



Category: due South
Genre: Apocalypse, M/M, Potentially fatal illness, Romantic Feels, ambiguous ending, angsty feels, not an entirely linear narrative, pandemic but not Covid-19
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:08:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25233640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ride_Forever/pseuds/Ride_Forever
Summary: As far as Fraser knew, there had been no contact between Canadians and Americans in the years since the rockets from each other’s countries had exploded overhead, followed by the mysterious illness that prompted deportations on both sides and the building of the wall between the U.S. and Canada.
Relationships: Benton Fraser/Ray Kowalski
Comments: 19
Kudos: 28
Collections: Con*Strict 2020 Virtual Zine, Due South Archive





	Akuttujuuk: Two Placed Far Apart (the Orion Dying Remix)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [nic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nic/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Orion Dying](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14108) by [nic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nic/pseuds/nic). 



> TYK to my beta, [verushka70](https://verushka70.dreamwidth.org/), whose insightful comments made this a better fic, whose grace and speed under time-pressure are above-and-beyond awesome, and whose dedication to this fandom and this pairing are sources of fannish joy.
> 
> TYK to [sian1359](https://sian1359.dreamwidth.org/) for making the Con*Strict Virtual Zine happen.

As far as Fraser knew, there had been no contact between Canadians and Americans in the years since the rockets from each other’s countries had exploded overhead, followed by the mysterious illness that prompted deportations on both sides and the building of the wall between the U.S. and Canada. He thought of Ray Kowalski often. Thought of their interrupted Quest for the Hand of Franklin. Thought of their interrupted…what? An intimate touch that almost happened but didn’t? A kiss that almost happened but didn’t? The unfulfilled promise of a friendship becoming more than simply friendship?

Fraser had requested and been granted Border Patrol duty. No American had yet tried to make it over the closely guarded and heavily armed wall, but Fraser allowed himself to both hope -- and fear -- for what Ray might some day do: that the man who had taken a bullet for him, crashed through a skylight for him, jumped a motorcycle through a window for him, driven a flaming car into the lake they call Michigan at his behest, and followed him into the Northwest Territories for the sake of adventure -- and perhaps love -- would be the one to try it. And if that ever happened, Fraser wanted to be close at hand. 

~^~ ~^~ ~^~

The campfire provided some warmth and some light for the two adventurers, but the light that held their attention was the starlit sky of the Northwest Territories. Fraser was well along in pointing out constellations to Ray with a detailed commentary about Ptolemy’s Almagest and with comparisons to Inuit astronomy.

“…and of course the most well-known names in the world-at-large for the constellations are of Greco-Roman origin, coming as they are from Ptolemy’s listing of 48 constellations, but various cultures have their own names and legends for what they see in the night sky. For instance, the constellation commonly called Orion is called Akuttujuuuk by the Inuit – they see the stars Betelgeuse and Bellatrix which make up Orion’s ‘shoulders’ as ‘Two Placed Far Apart’.”

“You know, Fraser, every one of those legends you’ve told me so far is a downer. And that Orion was a double-downer. First he gets blinded by that king and then he gets killed by that giant scorpion. And as for that Lou Scagnetti campfire story, said it before and I’m saying it again, that’s one dark story.”

“Well, Ray, Lou Scagnetti is not a constellation….”

“Not my point. Not my point. The point is you don’t tell happy stories, and besides which I never liked the word ‘constellation’ .”

Fraser frowned slightly in puzzlement. “Never liked the word…?”

“It’s got ‘con’ and ‘stella’ in it.”

“Ah.”

Ray pushed past the awkward moment. It had been awkward since the divorce to mention Stella to anyone, especially to Fraser who always seemed determined to think the best of people…except Stella. Ray said “Hey, let’s change the subject.”

Fraser nodded, looked away for a moment, and then looked at Ray in a way that was similar to Dief deciding whether or not to make a grab for a doughnut (might get something sweet or might just get smacked on the nose).

“Ray, why are you here?”

“Woah, that’s a subject change alright! And you know why. I wanted to go on an adventure.”

“Yes, but why _this_ adventure?”

“Well, I was already kinda here…and….”

“And?”

“And it coulda been anywhere you were. _You’re_ my adventure.” He said it fast and soft, gazing towards the campfire, determined to not be a con job this time but scared that he had said too much.

When Ray looked back at Fraser he knew that Fraser had received those words gladly, and that was scary in a different way, because what they meant to each other was becoming clearer by the moment and that could have all kinds of unexpected consequences. Fraser looked like he had gotten something sweet and not the smack on the nose, and then he said “And you are my adventure.”

Then there was the scary-but-good moment when they began leaning towards each other, hands reaching for each other…and then one bomber plane and another had traversed the sky...and in the scary-really-bad moment of explosive sound and shuddering earth whatever was about to happen between them was interrupted. 

~^~ ~^~ ~^~

A unique occurrence! An American had dodged the weaponry at the border and made it right up to the wall before being caught by Border Patrol! Everyone on the Border Patrol heard about it almost immediately and knew that the American was quarantined in a holding cell on Canadian soil.

Fraser stood silently in the hallway, close to the holding cell but not within sighting distance, trying to keep both his hopes and his fears in check. He was suddenly tempted to just stand there unmoving for hours as he had done on sentry duty at the Canadian Consulate in Chicago in those bygone times. 

Finally, murmuring to himself, “I am a Mountie, I can do this,” he moved to stand at the bars of the holding cell and, heart pounding, spoke Ray’s name.

Without moving from where he sat on a cot in the far corner of the cell, Ray responded fervently. “Missed you so damn much, Fraser.”.

“And I you, Ray.” Spoken with equal fervency.

“That border wall, Fraze. Talk about you set ‘em up, I knock ‘em down.”

“At the wry tone, Fraser rubbed his eyebrow with a knuckle of his gloved hand and admonished Ray. “That’s nothing to joke about, Ray! You could have been shot!”

“I know that -- I guess I also missed having my life endangered in wildly bizarre ways on your account.”

“Ray!”

“Yeah, nothing to joke about. But you ever hear of gallows humor? I’m…I could be dying, Fraser. I’ve got a sickness, THE sickness.”

Fraser had suspected as much, seeing how Ray had gone from slim to gaunt, but had held the thought at bay in the emotional first moments of reunion. Now he opened the cell door, strode across the room, and had his hands on Ray’s shoulders before Ray could react. 

Then, as Fraser drew him to a standing position, Ray cried out. “No, Fraser! No! No! You could get sick yourself from being this close to me!”

“No, I will not refrain from touching you! Not when all these long years I have thought again and again of what happened – and what didn’t happen – when our Quest was so abruptly ended. When I have thought again and again of how we were akuttujuuk, of how I didn’t even know if you were still alive, of what I would say to you and what I would do if we were reunited.”

Then Fraser firmly vowed: “To have and to hold. To love and to cherish. In sickness and in health -- in health and in sickness, Ray. As long as we both shall live.” 

Fraser removed his mask and then removed Ray’s. A look both solemn and warm passed between them. Ray nodded and they sealed those vows with a kiss.


End file.
